Taiko Audio SGM Extreme : the Crème de la Crème
- Thread starter CKKeung
- Start date
You would have to ask Emile and it doesn't matter to me at this point
Damn-it! All this upgrade and sonic bliss talk is making it very hard to focus.
Bob.east, which speakers are you playing in the room where you have the Electra DAC? (Assuming you haven't sold it off already.)
Bob.east, which speakers are you playing in the room where you have the Electra DAC? (Assuming you haven't sold it off already.)
Bob, you’d possibly be the someone most likely to have system videos pre OS driver upgrade and have a range of reference setups that are very telling… any chance you’d be able to do a post upgrade video recording of a same system setup but running with the Roon OS upgrade and then TAS. Would love to get a glimpse of the nature of the change you are hearing if it is still possible.
These kind of big experiential shifts are always fascinating and great chances to get a sense of what others are experiencing when having phenomenal shifts in the way their systems sound from seemingly incremental changes. I do believe what you are saying you are experiencing this as and it would be great to see how it comes over in a video and if it is one of the things that videos can in some ways then relay.
PS not trying to just make new work for you as I figure you’d be there happy just listening to the music and selling your gear. Does sound like living the dream to me.
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I am using an Aqua LaScala. I sold my Elektra a while ago. Waiting for a new one. I'm playing on the Alsyvox BX with big VAC tube amps.
Hello....that would be fun but I'll pass as this is so monumental that I want each person to experience it first hand when they get updated. I believe before and after videos would not show what is going on in the room.
I was just talking to someone and this analogy came to me. Looking back prior to the update it was like the sound was like a half blown up balloon, with the update the balloon instantly became fully blown up to 100% level. It's a sonic explosion.
All of the Extreme users will get to experience it first hand soon. I would not want to diminish the experience with videos that may or may not document the significance of what the Taiko team has accomplished.
All aboard, all aboard....on the "Taiko Train"....wooooohhhhhhh
Bob, that makes sense and is very considerate… perhaps once it’s updated across for many it might be possible to share then though I understand if not.
I'm crying 'uncle', at least temporarily.
As I write, I'm having roon scan my music library and I've signed up for a free trial. I'll do monthly extensions, if needed, until XMDS is ready for distribution.
Is it because of excitement over the SQ of the new OS tweaks? Actually, it is not.
[warning: blasphemous, the best sound is not everything, thoughts below]
I reached the point this past week where I realized that I was simply not enjoying music the way I used to and
the reason for this was clearly the lack of gapless playback. Listening to Neil Young or Joni Mitchell at Carnegie Hall,
Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note, the Grateful Dead anywhere, the 5 seconds of silence between tracks had just become
soul-crushing and the interruption (and expectation and dreadful anticipation of the oncoming interruption) during a song medley/sequence was taking the joy out of listening. If roon is the only way for me to work around that in the short term, I'll live with the inability of roon to navigate the file/directory structures I've created over the years.
[end of warning]
On the other hand, there will be a huge side benefit as I will be able to benefit (next week) from the recent sonic breakthroughs and not have to wait for XMDS, but nothing (not even gobsmacking sound) right now is as appealing to me as eliminating the gap. I can wait until next week for gobsmacking
As I write, I'm having roon scan my music library and I've signed up for a free trial. I'll do monthly extensions, if needed, until XMDS is ready for distribution.
Is it because of excitement over the SQ of the new OS tweaks? Actually, it is not.
[warning: blasphemous, the best sound is not everything, thoughts below]
I reached the point this past week where I realized that I was simply not enjoying music the way I used to and
the reason for this was clearly the lack of gapless playback. Listening to Neil Young or Joni Mitchell at Carnegie Hall,
Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note, the Grateful Dead anywhere, the 5 seconds of silence between tracks had just become
soul-crushing and the interruption (and expectation and dreadful anticipation of the oncoming interruption) during a song medley/sequence was taking the joy out of listening. If roon is the only way for me to work around that in the short term, I'll live with the inability of roon to navigate the file/directory structures I've created over the years.
[end of warning]
On the other hand, there will be a huge side benefit as I will be able to benefit (next week) from the recent sonic breakthroughs and not have to wait for XMDS, but nothing (not even gobsmacking sound) right now is as appealing to me as eliminating the gap. I can wait until next week for gobsmacking
I’ve lost interest in videos. I know a lot of people can tell everything or certain things from the videos, for me personally they don’t represent what I hear in the room or even close. Bass reproduction is so important regardless of what I’m playing even mid range and top end and you don’t get that with videos so for me they just don’t work but I totally understand that for a whole lot of people they’re great.
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The BEST part is you get both...Roon and all it's glory and then THE SOUND....for freeI'm crying 'uncle', at least temporarily.
As I write, I'm having roon scan my music library and I've signed up for a free trial. I'll do monthly extensions, if needed, until XMDS is ready for distribution.
Is it because of excitement over the SQ of the new OS tweaks? Actually, it is not.
[warning: blasphemous, the best sound is not everything, thoughts below]
I reached the point this past week where I realized that I was simply not enjoying music the way I used to and
the reason for this was clearly the lack of gapless playback. Listening to Neil Young or Joni Mitchell at Carnegie Hall,
Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note, the Grateful Dead anywhere, the 5 seconds of silence between tracks had just become
soul-crushing and the interruption (and expectation and dreadful anticipation of the oncoming interruption) during a song medley/sequence was taking the joy out of listening. If roon is the only way for me to work around that in the short term, I'll live with the inability of roon to navigate the file/directory structures I've created over the years.
[end of warning]
On the other hand, there will be a huge side benefit as I will be able to benefit (next week) from the recent sonic breakthroughs and not have to wait for XMDS, but nothing (not even gobsmacking sound) right now is as appealing to me as eliminating the gap. I can wait until next week for gobsmacking
I'm running five different speakers off of the Extreme/dac set up -Alsyvox BX, Raidho TD3.8, Bayz Counterpoint, Magico A5s and Diesis Roma Triode. The update has the same exact effect on each system.
I have a question. I am going to re-label one of my keyboard function buttons "Whoa, mama!!" When I listen to something extraordinary with the new OS, I will push that button each time. If I push it 200 times/hour, I want to know....does that count as gym time for me?
steve williams
Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
I said it. I haven’t moved from my chair in 3 days.
I have personally never experienced such a huge uptick sonically in any change I have ever made to my system. And to think there’s another 25% coming.Even more amazing was Emile created the miracle via TeamViewer in under 5 minutes
That balloon analogy is exactly the same that I had when telling my dealer about the uptick from switching my Shunyata Everest wall powercord from Sigma XC to Omega XC. Only there I had described to difference as „only“ a say 70-75% fully blown balloon before.
So I would assume that in both cases the reason for the sonic improvement is really a less restricted flow of energy of music. I‘m neither an engineer or SW designer, but could imaging that one/the key is just to make pass the music / data flow the easiest through a system. … ok now that might sound pretty obvious, but actually doing it in practice is the challenge. Now for that we have Emile, Edward and the Taiko Team.
That sort of thing is why my "library" has ballooned to almost 9000 albums and over 108,000 tracks -- when I hear something that sounds really good to me, music and SQ-wise, I end up adding it my library. This slowed down a bit with TAS (only because it takes more clicks to add something to my Favorites), but with Roon and particularly Roon Radio -- oh my!
I like your idea of giving myself exercise credit for all the clicking. The only downside? At this point in my life I probably don't have enough years left to listen to everything even once. And I'm not counting the 8-9000 vinyl LPs that constantly vie for my attention, too!
Truly a first world problem -- too much music!
Steve Z
Well, there were probably more than five minutes "behind the curtain" developing the miracle, but I totally get what you're saying Steve. I'm still shaking my head in disbelief. It was just like the first time I heard my then-new Extreme in my system -- I started laughing out loud about 10 seconds into the first track and spoke out loud to the empty room, "You've got to be kidding me!"
My wife refuses to bring my meals to my listening chair, so I've been considering moving an IV drip and bed pan into the living room. Conversation pieces I call 'em!
Steve Z
...astronaut diapers. One free case with the purchase of every Extreme.
@Taiko Audio
Emile, has anyone tested large 24/16FS PGGB files with these new fixes? If not, I volunteer. I'll ping you.
Emile, has anyone tested large 24/16FS PGGB files with these new fixes? If not, I volunteer. I'll ping you.
Not 24/16FS PGGB, Rajiv -- my dCS equipment tops out at 24/384 -- but 24/8FS play just fine. Of course, they should, 24/352.8 aka DXD and 24/384 PCM files whether straight PCM or PGGB'd played fine before. The sound quality improvement with the OS tweaks is consistent across sample rate, bit-depth and format (PCM or DSD) in my experience so far.
Steve Z
